Engadget RSS Feedhttp://www.engadget.com
Engadgethttp://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gifEngadgethttp://www.engadget.com
en-usCopyright 2015 AOL Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/20/chinese-devs-can-now-sell-their-android-apps-on-the-play-store/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/20/chinese-devs-can-now-sell-their-android-apps-on-the-play-store/http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/20/chinese-devs-can-now-sell-their-android-apps-on-the-play-store/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget#comments

Chinese developers can finally sell their Android apps through the Google Play Store, possibly foreshadowing a local launch of the marketplace. The move gives devs the ability to sell their apps to Android users in over 130 countries around the world, with one major exception: China, where the Play Store is not available -- for now.

]]>
app storechinadevdevelopersgoogleplay storeThu, 20 Nov 2014 06:53:00 -050021|20996570http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/10/27/the-stream-team-touring-rifts-nightmare-tide-with-trions-dagl/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Massively&ncid=rss_semi
http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/10/27/the-stream-team-touring-rifts-nightmare-tide-with-trions-dagl/http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/10/27/the-stream-team-touring-rifts-nightmare-tide-with-trions-dagl/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Massively#commentsRIFT's latest expansion Nightmare Tide just launched last week, so there are plenty of new things to do and new places to see. And who better to guide you though those than the folks who made them? Executive Producer Bill "Daglar" Fisher, Senior Development Director Simon "DeadSimon" Ffinch, Senior Systems Designer Chris "Archonix" Junior,and Senior Community Manager Eric "Ocho" Cleaver join Massively's MJ for a romp through the new content. Bring your questions for the team and join us live at 2:00 p.m. to ride through Nightmare Tide.

]]>
devdev-interviewdev-tourEric-Cleaverf2pfantasyfree-to-playlivestreamlivestreaminglivestreamsmassively-metamassively-tvMJ-Guthrie-livestreammv-tvmvtvpvpriftrift-literift-planes-of-telararvrSimon-Ffinchstreamstream-teamstreamingstreamteamthe-stream-teamthree-faction-pvpthree-way-pvptriontrion-worldstwitchtwitch-tvMon, 27 Oct 2014 14:00:00 -0400319|20982508http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/10/18/the-daily-grind-what-advice-would-you-give-as-a-gamer-to-a-deve/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Massively&ncid=rss_semi
http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/10/18/the-daily-grind-what-advice-would-you-give-as-a-gamer-to-a-deve/http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/10/18/the-daily-grind-what-advice-would-you-give-as-a-gamer-to-a-deve/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Massively#comments
Communication between developers and gamers isn't always as simple as a one-on-one chat. The devs have an enormous microphone that gamers can't help but hear, but they also have everything they say scrutinized and analyzed past the point of helpfulness. Gamers, on the other hand, can only shout into the wind and hope that their voice rises above the rest of the mob to be heard by a studio team.

But let's pretend that today, all of the MMO devs in the world are in an audience and you are up on stage with the mic. What advice would you give them? What would you want devs to know if they were really listening to you?

Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!

Did you nod off a few times during the last half-hour of Google's opening keynote of I/O 2014 earlier today? No worries! The full video has been archived for your post-event viewing pleasure on YouTube. Hop down past the break to take a good, long look at the nearly three-hour event spanning Android "L," Auto, Wear and more.

]]>
androidchromedevdeveloperdevsgooglegoogleio2014keynotevideoWed, 25 Jun 2014 16:17:00 -040021|20920048http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/06/02/the-stream-team-celebrating-marvel-heroes-anniversary-with-a/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Massively&ncid=rss_semi
http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/06/02/the-stream-team-celebrating-marvel-heroes-anniversary-with-a/http://massively.joystiq.com/2014/06/02/the-stream-team-celebrating-marvel-heroes-anniversary-with-a/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Massively#commentsMarvel Heroes is celebrating its anniversary this week, and Massively's MJ is inviting you to the party. Also attending is Ryan Collins (AKA Ryolnir), a font of knowledge for all things Marvel Heroes and the game's community manager. And what's a party without gifts? We'll have special codes available! Got questions about the upcoming Marvel Heroes 2015 or the Mac beta? Come get answers as well as gifts. Join us live at 4:00 p.m. EDT to enjoy some superhero action and maybe walk away with a special something just for coming.

With different requirements and countless other incompatibilities, building applications for multiple platforms can be a tremendous chore. Embarcadero Technologies is setting out to simplify that process a bit with Appmethod, a multi-device development platform that lets you create apps for Android, iOS, Mac and Windows simultaneously. The WYSIWYG tool lets you drag and drop buttons, connectors, databases and other design elements into one emulated platform, then easily duplicate the app onto another.

If you're an Android user, there's little doubt that you're familiar with Google Drive, Mountain View's preferred cloud storage service that competes with the Dropboxes, SkyDrives and iClouds of the world. Of course, Drive can also be used by developers to build better apps, and today Google has rolled out a new Drive Android API to make devs' jobs even easier -- and provide us all with better app experiences. The main attraction is a feature called transparent offline syncing, which, for users, means that cloud storage is treated the same way as local storage.

]]>
apiappscloudstoragedevdevelopergooglegoogledrivemobilepostcrossvideoThu, 16 Jan 2014 22:41:00 -050021|20809753http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/12/30/not-so-massively-diablo-iiis-nephalem-rifts-poe-season-six-a/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Massively&ncid=rss_semi
http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/12/30/not-so-massively-diablo-iiis-nephalem-rifts-poe-season-six-a/http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/12/30/not-so-massively-diablo-iiis-nephalem-rifts-poe-season-six-a/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Massively#comments
There's just one day left to sign up to Star Citizen's Next Great Starship game modding competition, and 198 teams have signed up to compete. Following the recent delay of the dogfighting module, players who missed the livestream got an early peek at the delayed and buggy combat gameplay when the full video was uploaded to YouTube this week. League of Legends was hit with its own scary bug this week that appears to make players on the other team teleport across the map toward you.

Blizzard has now confirmed that the Nephalem Rifts feature coming to Diablo III will now be exclusive to Reaper of Souls expansion holders rather than the free update accompanying the game. Path of Exile developer Grinding Gear Games announced that its sixth race season will begin on January 10th, and players have recently discovered some odd stats spawning on fishing pole items originally thought to be worthless. And Firefall's ex-CEO Mark Kern defended himself on Twitter this week, stating that he wasn't fired but instead resigned after losing his status as CEO. Developers working under Mark have been writing about their discontentment with his command style this week on Glassdor and Reddit.

Perhaps LG thinks life could be better than good for the company if more developers create apps for its smartphones and tablets. That's why the Korean corporation has launched a program that loans devices to devs free of charge. The catch (there's always a catch), is that LG wants devs to design proprietary apps for its phones -- but it doesn't forbid folks from seeing if their non-exclusive apps play nice with the handsets, too. If you're interested and technically adept, you can register at the official LG Device Loaner Program website and choose from one of the gadgets available, including the G2. You only have 30 days with whichever you choose, and return shipping's on your dime, but it's still a pretty good deal if you've been looking to test your code on LG's hardware.

"Here's where it all happens for Apple developers" reads the tagline, but that's not been the case for much of the last few weeks. This morning, Apple's advising that its developer centre is now fully restored, after being taken offline due to intruder attempts. Hopefully for real this time. In any case, Cupertino's offering up a month's extended membership in return for the inconvenience, as outlined in the official statement past the break. Now, back to it...

While most of you are fixing to shut things down for the weekend, Apple's developer portal is waking up after a weeklong hiatus. If you'll recall, Apple affirmed that its dev center was hacked last week while simultaneously announcing a system overhaul. Now, however, things seem to be back in action, with little to no consumer-facing changes to the site itself. If we had to guess, we'd say the bulk of the tweaks have happened behind the scenes. With that, we invite you to return to your regularly scheduled coding.

]]>
appledevdev centerDevCenterdeveloperhackonlinesecurityFri, 26 Jul 2013 18:02:00 -040021|20678510http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/07/14/the-daily-grind-how-transparent-should-developers-be/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Massively&ncid=rss_semi
http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/07/14/the-daily-grind-how-transparent-should-developers-be/http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/07/14/the-daily-grind-how-transparent-should-developers-be/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Massively#comments
Sometimes I feel for developers, as they must walk a line between being too chatty and not chatty enough with fans. On one hand, players tend to take what developers say as sacred gospel that can and should be thrown back in the devs' faces if the game takes a different path, so some measure of restraint in sharing future goals is probably necessary. On the other hand, developers who are too secretive and distant from the community end up creating an atmosphere of distrust and aloofness.

So where's that balance? How transparent and open should developers be? Maybe you love devs to talk about every little aspect of the game's inner workings, lofty plans, and tricky choices. Maybe you're more willing to cut those devs some slack if things don't pan out. Or maybe you think a dev shouldn't say anything until he or she is 100% confident that what is said will pan out.

You make the call today. If you were in charge of a studio, where would you set the line?

Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!

iOS 7 was revealed less than a month ago, and already Apple has pushed out its third beta release for the operating system. Yes, mobile devs, that means you've got a new download coming to you from Cupertino that'll fix a plethora of problems found in beta 2, and add a few improvements as well. The full list of additions is too lengthy to include here, but registered devs can find the full release notes at the source, and other folks can peruse them over at 9to5Mac.

Video-game maker Sony has been making a big push for independent developers lately, both on its handheld PS Vita system and on its upcoming PlayStation 4 console, and yesterday, the company took another big step. Sony has decided to waive its usual US$99 fee for PlayStation Mobile developers, meaning that anyone can join the developer network and publish games on its platforms for free. That's a big move, and while it might not mean a boost in PlayStation Mobile publishing (there are other hiccups, such as the difficulty of game creation and the limited size of the market), it does show just how open Sony is to independent software developers.

So here's a question: Would Apple ever do the same thing? Ever since the App Store opened, Apple has charged $99 a year for a developer account to publish apps on its platforms. Anyone can download and use Xcode to make apps, but to publish them, you've had to pay that fee, and the price has never changed.

If Apple did lower the price or remove it, there would be some benefits: There'd be more apps on the App Store, and thus more potential profit for Apple and its developers. The developer community would be more open, which would lead to better documentation and communication in general. And while, yes, there would probably be even more low-quality apps, there would also be more potential for great or terrific apps that focus on a relatively niche market.

However, Apple would lose all the money it makes from the developer fee, money that probably goes into maintaining the developer network and its services. And Apple likely doesn't want the dev network to be a complete free for all. It still uses that network to beta test new software and operating systems, and there is still (technically) a non-disclosure agreement that binds anyone who signs up for the program.

Plus, it's not like Apple needs more developers. Those numbers are growing every day, even with the fee in place. So it seems unlikely that Apple will drop or even change that fee anytime soon: It's a very low barrier to development, but for Apple, it's better than no barrier at all.

With the well-hyped release of the new Google Maps app came the quieter announcement that the company is also releasing a Google Maps SDK for iOS. The SDK allows app developers to prefer in-app Google Maps instead of Apple's iOS 6 maps. The SDK will also allow developers to specify in their apps if an address or directions should be opened in Apple's Maps, or the Google Maps app.

With the Google Maps SDK for iOS, developers can feature Google maps in their applications on the iPod touch, iPhone and iPad. Also, the SDK makes it simple to link to Google Maps for iPhone from inside your app, enabling your users to easily search and get directions.

The SDK features vector-based maps that load quickly, allowing users to easily navigate 2D and 3D views, rotating and tilting the map with simple gestures inside your app. Developers can also change the Google maps view to include information such as traffic conditions, and control camera positions in 3D.

Interested developers are asked to register their interest as access to the API keys are being selectively rolled out. Also users need not worry about an app developer forcing an address or directions link in an app to be opened in Google Maps. If a user doesn't have the Google Maps app installed, the link falls back to Apple's mapping API.

Back at 360iDev in Denver earlier this year, I met a guy named Tate Jennings, an indie developer behind a company called Mighty Bits. Jennings was working on a game called Smash Vote, which he described to me as a political fighting game. It was literally a game featuring versions of famous politicians like Obama and Romney fighting it out Mortal Kombat-style with each other. I joked to Jennings that he'd better hurry, because he'd have to get it done by November 6, and he replied with a sort of exasperated shrug. That, it turned out, was exactly his goal. I'm happy to announce that he made it: Smash Vote arrived on the App Store yesterday, sliding through Apple's approval cycle just in the nick of time.

Of course, I'm not telling you about it until today, which is technically a day after the election. But it's still a good bit of cheesy political fun. You can choose to fight as either of yesterday's opponents or other famous faces like Hillary Clinton or Sarah Palin, and "debate" it out with punches and kicks. There's not a lot to it, but it's a completely free app, and if you want to take out some aggression on a politician (perhaps either because you lost or won), it's worth the download. Jennings says there's updates coming soon, to add voiceovers, special moves, more characters and all of the other features he wasn't able to sneak in before the Election Day deadline.

Congrats to Jennings on his hard work. All indie developers on the App Store are of course working hard, but he gave himself a hard deadline on a pretty ambitious game, and while not everything made it in to the current release, Smash Vote showed up right on time.

While you might use Firefox to access your social media of choice already, preliminary support for a new API has been introduced that could integrate key features into the browser itself. The aptly named Social API, will allow developers to embed services into the browser directly, letting you interact with friends and stay updated without having to open new windows, or keep hopping into different tabs. There's no solid info just yet on how this will manifest itself, or how issues such as security and privacy might be addressed, but with testing beginning soon, we're expecting the curtain to lift on the finer details soon. Interested developers can head to the source, for the other billion, you'll just have to wait.

If you've been intrigued by the Raspberry Pi but were hesitant to get one because you're new to Linux, Adafruit has a solution for you. The team that brought us the Raspberry Pi Education Linux Distro has come up with a special WebIDE (Web Integrated Development Environment) designed to run on the affordable barebones computer. It's entirely web-based so there's no need to install any software -- just launch a browser, hook up your Pi, and you're ready to go. To make life easier for coders, the platform has a terminal built in, plus there's an automatic updater included to keep folks running only the freshest version of WebIDE. It's currently at the alpha stage, so only experienced users should install it for now, but Adafruit's hoping to roll out a stable release suitable for programmers of all levels sometime soon.

Google recently announced to developers the availability of a new "Services" platform, to allow better integration of its core products in 3rd party apps. The update comes in the form of an APK that will automatically find its way to handsets with Android 2.2 and above. But, for the impatient amongst you, it's available for download directly from the Play store now. This first release centers around better integration for Google+ (for account sign-in / Plus buttons etc) and providing OAuth 2.0 functionality, but it's expected that deeper functionality with the Google universe will take root soon. Most handily, as Mountain View decided to deliver this in the form of an app / APK, there's no pesky waiting around for networks to get it to you. Read up on the benefits via the more coverage links, or head to the source to make sure you're on-board.

Amazon's celebrating its new line of Kindle Fires with the announcement of Device Targeting, a feature aimed at helping developers create apps across its tablet line. Using the new program, app makers can offers up APKs for specific devices like the old Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD (different screen sizes included), without displaying "confusing" multiple versions of the app for consumers. The new feature ensures that customers who download an app get the proper version delivered to the right devices. More info on the program -- including an FAQ for curious parties -- can be found in the source link below.

Twitter has ruffled a few feathers recently, so when CEO Dick Costolo took the stage at the Online News Association conference in San Francisco, he took the opportunity to put some minds at rest. First he dismissed the idea that the service would become a media company by forcing users to the site or official app for content, before reasserting his belief in syndication. Costolo then went on to imply that the reason behind the tighter (and unpopular) API controls was ensuring quality -- stating that Twitter would reach its full potential now there's more control over how tweets are delivered. With boots strapped, we can look forward to some new features, such as the option to curate messages that are published (such as during live events) plus tweets with interactive features like polls during live sports games. The famous 140 character limit is to remain, but will also serve as a "caption for additional functionality." Perhaps of most interest to disenfranchised developers, however, was the mention of application functionality in tweets, where short messages could contain small interactive apps. Something for devs to get potentially get back on board with? We hope so. But until further details unfold, we're still left considering our options.

Motorola just released three new consumer phones today, but the company didn't want to leave developers out in the cold, so it also quietly rolled out a pair of developer handsets. A mere $550 gets you on the list right now for a RAZR M Developer Edition set to be shipped next week direct from Moto, and you can sign up for updates on the availability of a forthcoming RAZR HD dev-friendly handset, too. Each phone will bring an unlockable bootloader and the promise of immediate software gratification, though Motorola hasn't set an availability date or price for the HD version just yet. You can get on the list for either device at the source links below.

You've already got plenty of options if you're in the market for a developer board, but it might be worth taking a look at the new $49 Cubieboard, which packs quite the specs given its price point. The board hosts a 1GHz AllWinner A10 Cortex A8 CPU with Mali-400 GPU, 1GB of RAM and 4 gigs of onboard storage. For ins and outs, you're looking at 1080p HDMI, Ethernet, one MultiMediaCard (MMC) slot, a SATA port, two USB hosts, an IR sensor and 96 extender pins for solder junkies. Cubieboard's Wiki page lists an additional MMC slot and USB OTG, but as this doesn't check out in the pictures, we assume they've either been scrapped, or they'll be added on for later production runs. As you would expect, several versions of Linux and Android are supported by the Raspberry Pi bully, which is expected to start shipping to select developers sometime this week. There's no word on when it may be available for general consumption, but by then you'll hopefully have a better product anyway -- if the pros have done their job, that is.

Second screen apps seem to be alltherage as of late, and Vobile's freshly announced TVSync API platform can help developers ride that wave of popularity. Compatible with iOS and Android devices, PCs and some smart TVs, the API can be leveraged to supplement what's on the silver screen with relevant content ranging from polls to products. Apps developed with the interface can trigger what's displayed on the companion screen at just the right moment by analyzing audio, video, or both. For instance, a recipe featured on a celebrity chef's program could be pushed to your slate as soon as it's first mentioned. Yearning to code an app of your own with the tech? Visit the source to request beta access to TVSync or look below for the full press release.